That stupid gun
by PFCMegan
Summary: One of the Cartwright boys meets up with a very interesting lady.....I finally added some more new stuff to this story, I hope you like it, I'll probably end up editing it again, but I wanted to put something out! Read and Review!


Alexius drove her wagon across an open land watching the sunset, knowing she needed to find a place to stay for the night. _Danny should be coming in pretty soon, maybe he found a place to stay for the night. _She thought as she slowed the team. She looked around and noticed a small stream not too far away.

When her and the team reached the stream, she climbed down from the wagon seat and unhitched the team and led them to water. She also unhitched Joey's extra horse, and led him to water. She picked up some sticks and built a small fire, put water in their coffee pot, put it on the fire, and then took down the tent from the wagon, and set it up, throwing her blankets in the tent.

She grabbed the shotgun from the wagon and walked to the stream. She sat down on the bank and pulled off her boots and her socks, then slid her feet into the cool water, relishing in the coolness. She'd done so much walking in the last few days that she began to wish that she could stay by this stream for the rest of her life. Alexius tried not to think of the weeks that had gone before, but only of the days to come. She almost began to drift off to sleep when she heard a horse come up behind her. She didn't open her and didn't make a sound, but slowly reached for her gun.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." A voice said from behind her, but she instantly knew that it wasn't Joey. "Leave the gun where it is, and slowly scoot away from it." Alexius put her hands on the ground and moved away from the gun.

"Can I ask what I did and can I turn around?" She sighed scared to death.

Alexius could hear the man walk over to her gun and pick it up, then back away from her. "Slowly, get up, then turn around, so I can look at you." She got up, turned around, and stepped out of the water. She lifted her hand up to shield her eyes from the sun.

"Can I ask what I did?" She asked a tall largely built man.

"I don't take kindly to people setting up on our land, and reaching for their guns." The voice boomed.

"Why don't you pick up your shoes and socks, and come over to your wagon. Would I be imposing if I asked you for a cup of coffee? I've been riding all day, and something strong would help me a lot."

"Of course, just promise not to shoot me." Alexius smiled a little and picked up her belongings and walked to her wagon. She untied a knot in a cloth bag and took out two cups and filled them both with coffee. Alexius handed the man a cup, and asked, "So what did I do that was so bad that you figured you could pull a gun on me?" She sat down on the ground, stretching out her feet to the now welcomed fire.

The man sipped his coffee a little bit, the questioned, "So what's your name and why are you here and where are you going?"

Alexius blinked at him, "Uhh…." She started, stunned at all the questions he was throwing at her. "I'm Alexius. I came from the Minnesota Territory, and I'm going to California, hopefully." She stood up and walked towards the man.

"Whoa. Don't come any closer."

She stopped dead in her tracks, "I was gong to refill your coffee cup."

"Oh, sorry." He gave her the cup.

"Now it's my turn. Who are you? Why did you pull a gun on me?"

He smiled at her, "Well, My name is Adam Cartwright and this is the Ponderosa. I pulled the gun on you, because my pa, my brothers, and I don't take too kindly to people being on our land without asking. We've had problems with squatters in the past and know we're kind weary of them, that's why. I didn't mean no harm to you, and I certainly didn't mean to scare you. I apologize."

"Well, I apologize to for coming on your land. I was just going to set up a fire and cook some food, and get some food water. This looks like a good place to get water. I just needed a break from the monotony of driving the wagon all day. I'll be making some food here in a few minutes, would you like to stay for supper?" Alexius asked. "Oh, by the way, my name is Alexius, but everyone calls me Alex. I'm from the east…pretty close to the Minnesota Territory." She got up and walked over to her wagon and began digging through a huge box. "I know I have some bread in here somewhere. I know it's not all gone." She pulled herself up into the wagon and Adam could hear her digging around grumbling. He smiled as he heard her swear. "I got it!"

She came out of the wagon with a muslin cloth covering a loaf of bread. She also had two jars that she put on the other side of the wagon, next to the wheel to hide them. Alexius took her pot to the stream and filled it with water as Adam watched her. She walked back over to the fire, set the pot down, took her fire poker and spread the ashes out, then put the pot over it. Alexius took the jerky and cut it into small pieces and threw them into the pot. "So what are you doing out on your land?" She asked as she glanced at Adam.

Alexius walked back to her wagon, took out some potatoes, and onion, carrots and some dehydrated peas. She sat down next to the fire and started cutting the vegetables and putting them into the pot. Adam began, "Once a week someone rides out to each sector of our land and checks on everything, makes sure there isn't any squatters and to check on our cattle. My brothers, my Pa and I take a turn every two weeks one of us goes out. We don't make our ranch hands do anything that we won't do ourselves."

"So, you and your brothers and your Pa share this land…What's it called again?" Alex asked as she threw the last of the vegetables into the pot. She also added some salt and pepper and stirred it before settling down on the grass to slip her shoes back on. "I gotta get my shawl, hold on." She went to the front of her wagon and retrieved her shawl and wrapper it around her. "Much better."

Alexius sat down once more to watch the supper. She began talking again, but was silenced by Adam. "Be quiet and don't move." She looked at him as he slowly got up and pulled out his gun. She looked at him wide-eyed, not hearing anything, but she had seen a bear track earlier in the day. She slowly got up and wrapped her shawl more closely. She snuck up behind Adam, "What?" Adam didn't say anything until he saw a figure walk out from behind a group of trees. The man that walked out from the shadows drew his gun and aimed at Adam, but Adam drew faster and fired his gun. Alexius screamed in sheer terror as she saw Danny fall to the ground.

She ran over to him and knelt down beside him as she saw blood pouring out of his leg. "Oh my God!" She looked at Adam, "You shot him! I have a first aid kit in the wagon. It's near the front! Get it!" Alex lifted up her dress, and reached for her petticoat and started ripping off pieces and folding them to make a patch. Adam ran to her and set it down on the ground and opened it. She took out the small knife and cut Danny's pant leg off. She looked at the wound and felt around it as Danny came too. "Danny you're going to be ok. You got shot in the leg. Just lay still. I'm going to take care of you." She took her ripped pieces of cloth and pushed it to his leg. He winced, "Jesus, I'm so sorry." She bandaged up his leg and ran back to her wagon and took a box that she had put in her wagon and she pulled two of the pieces apart and she went back to Danny and she laid them on each side of his leg and she took strips of cloth and wrapped it around his leg. "Ok, we need to get some liquids into you, and then we need to get you to a doctor, fast. Adam, we need to get him into the wagon. Let me get the stuff out of the way first." She ran over to the back of the wagon and she pushed all of the boxes out her the wagon and unrolled her bedding and laid them on the bottom of the wagon. She pulled out three pillows that her mother had made and laid them out. "Adam, can you bring him in here?"

"I can walk." Danny replied.

She ran to him, "You're not walking, stupid. Come on, let's help you get to the wagon." The three of them made their way over to the wagon, and they laid him down. ". "Adam get me to the closest town, fast." Adam walked over to her, and put his arms on her arms. "My ranch isn't very far from here, and my brother can get the doctor faster on horse, than with this wagon. We'll go there. It's not a life threatening wound, he's going to be fine and by the way you're acting, I'm guessing that he means something to you." She only nodded, before she climbed back into the wagon and told Adam to drive or pay the consequences.

After Hoss and Adam had carried Danny to a guest room and Joe had gone to get the doctor in Virginia City, Alexius finally sat down in a chair near the fire. "I should be with him. Excuse me, Mr. Cartwright."

Ben stepped between her and the staircase, "Ma'am, the doctor's looking at him right now. You have to give the doc some space to work. He'll be fine, but you look dead on your feet, are you sure that you don't want to get some rest?"

She snapped her head up and looked at him, "No, I don't want to rest. You're son shot Danny up! And he damned near to me hostage! No I don't want to rest in your house!"

Ben looked at her and turned away and shouted, "Adam didn't mean to shoot him!"

Alexius stepped in front of him, "I don't care! It doesn't mean that he didn't do it! I wanted to go to Virginia City to a doctor, not come here, but where does that stupid son of your's take us? HERE! This damned house! I didn't ask to be brought here!"

"Well, we didn't ask for you to be brought her, young lady! Adam did this out of the goodness of his heart, because he felt guilty for accidentally shooting whoever this man is! And who knows what you and that man were doing out there by yourself. I don't see any ring on that finger of yours! How dare you come into my house and say those nasty things!"

"Are you saying that I'm living out of wedlock? You stupid bastard!" Alexius stepped towards him and raised her hand to slap him.

Ben stopped her and put her hands down at her sides. He clutched his fists tightly, releasing and clenching. "Come here!" Ben made a fast move to grab Alexius, but she dodged him. They ran around the living room, until Ben reached out and snagged Alexius around the waist. He pulled her across his lap, when he sat back in his black leather chair.

"You're attitude is not that of a young lady, and you're not old enough to not get a good whipping!" He raised up his hand and came smacking down on her butt. She yelped in pain, and continued to fight him.

Adam walked down the stairs to tell Alexius about Danny's condition. "Pa! Let her go!" He rushed down the rest of the stairs to where his father sat.

"This young lady needs to have a good paddling! She's been nothing but rude since she got here! And she keeps insulting our family! I'm not going to hurt her too bad!" He let her up and she stood up and backed away from him

She stared at him wide-eyed and whispered, "How dare you."

"Look, Ms. You were in hysterics, and I don't tolerate that attitude and those words around here, especially from a young lady like you." Alexius kept backing to the door, then she turned the knob and ran outside. "Adam, just let her go. She'll be back."

"Pa, I'm not mad, but I gotta go talk to her. She's scared." Adam grabbed his jacket from the coat hanger and walked outside to the small patch of trees not too far from the entrance to the Ponderosa Ranch. Adam heard her softly sobbing.

"Alexius, it's me, Adam. Look my Pa shouldn't have done that, but you have to understand that he has rules around here and that you were out of line, otherwise Pa wouldn't have done that. Usually, he's a very understanding man, but you must have said something to push him like that." He paused and gently touched her shoulder. "It's cold out here, and right now Danny doesn't need you being sick, too. And I don't have any woman's clothes here, so please use my jacket." She gently reached for it.

"Adam, I'm sorry, I never meant to say any of those things, and I really didn't mean to raise my hand to him, but I have never been this alone before. My parents both died a few months ago on the way to California. Danny was one of my parent's ranch hands. After they died no one wanted to stay with me. Everyone left except Danny, and I promised to marry him, when my father asked Danny to take care of me on his death bed. When it came time for us to marry, I backed out, because I knew that he was more like a brother than he could ever be as a husband, but he stuck with me anyway. And look what happened!"

Alexius put her face in her hands, now covered by Adam's jacket. "I can't go back in there, the things that I said to your father. My dad would horsewhip me for saying those things. I just didn't know what to do, and before I could stop it, everything spilled out of my mouth. I deserved everything that he gave me, and probably much more."

She slowly looked up at Adam, "I'm sorry. Let me get Danny and we'll be on our way. Thank you so much for everything."

Adam stopped her before she could walked to the house, "My Pa will understand, the doctor should be about done, so you can go be with Danny, and I'll talk with Pa, and everything will be fine. I would really like it if you would stay here, because it's my fault that he was injured. Please, stay at least for a few days?"

Alexius looked up at him, "I would really appreciate that, and we will pay you back somehow. Money is short on our side right now, but I promise I'll repay you."

"Don't worry about it." Adam explained as they both walked to the house. Alexius made no eye contact with Ben as Adam showed her to Danny's room down the hall.

Adam walked back out into the living room and he explained Alexius' circumstances. "Well, Adam, I've very sorry that she has gone through all of this, and she is of course welcome here, but she better hold her tongue, be polite, and act like a lady."

"Of course I will, Mister Cartwright." Alexius slowly walked into the room from the hallway, "I sincerely apologize for my little bit before. I was just very worried about Danny, and I shouldn't have spoken out like that. One thing, even though it isn't an excuse, well we've been out on the trail for so long now, I've almost became one of the men, and when I'm around them, I'm used to talking in that way, and I sort of lost my head for a minute. Again, I really apologize for my behavior. My father would be very disappointed in me right now."

Ben walked to her, "It's quite alright, and I understand completely, and I apologize for _my _behavior, because I am used to more boys than girls, rather, young ladies. We will both work on our down falls. Now please, would you sit and enjoy a cup of coffee with Adam and I before we go to bed?"

Alexius clasped her hands together, "Mr. Cartwright, I would love to, but I need some sleep while I can. Danny is resting now, and I want to be by his side tomorrow. So I think I will pass on the coffee, but thank you anyway. Do you have a room that is somewhere near Danny, so that I may hear him if he calls in the night?"

"Please, I don't want things to be uncomfortable for us, so please, call me Ben. And yes, we do have a bedroom right next door to your friend. I'll go out to your wagon and get your belongings." Ben turned to open the door.

Alexius took a step towards him, "Thank you, and please, call me Lexius, or Lexie, but I'm afraid I have no other clothes. Before Adam arrived at my wagon, I had taken out my clothes, because we were going to stop tomorrow and I was going to hang them out to air, so there are none of my belongings in the wagon. They are still near the river."

Adam looked to both of them. "Pa, it's quite alright. She can use one of my night shirts tonight and tomorrow I will ride out with the wagon and bring all of her things back. If that's alright with you, Alexius?"

She looked at him, smiled and nodded. "That would be very kind of you." She sighed softly, "I'm tired, so if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to rest a bit before Danny wakes up."

Adam walked to her and put his hand on her elbow, "Alright, let me take you to your room, and I'll get one of my nightshirts for you."

Alexius nodded, "Alright. Ben I want to thank you so much for being so kind, and I really do apologize for before. I don't know what got into me."

Ben smiled, "Think nothing of it, from the time Adam was 4 until he was 16, I think he spent half his life over my knee. I also apologize for my reaction before. We'll think nothing of it." She laughed as her and Adam walked down the hall.

Pushing the door open, Adam said, "I'll go get that for you. Would you like something to eat before you go to bed?"

She smiled, "No, I'm fine, but were you a little trouble-maker when you were younger? I'll have to hear all about this later…" She leaned against the door as she watched Adam go down the hall shaking his head.

Then she heard Adam, "PA! Don't tell her that! Jeez!" Ben laughed.

A few minutes later Adam knocked softly on the door. "Alexius?"

"Ya, come on in, Adam." She looked at the door as it slowly opened, Adam carried a red striped nightshirt, and a tray that had a bowl on it with a glass of milk.

"Adam, I said that I wasn't hungry at all." She got off the bed and walked to him, taking the tray from him and setting it on the nightstand.

"Here's your nightclothes. I'll leave and let you change, then let me know when you're done and in bed, k? I thought that maybe we could talk a few minutes."

"Sure, just let me put this on."

Adam walked out and shut the door behind him. Alexius quickly stripped off her dress, and her shoes and socks. She slipped the oversized nightshirt over her head, and laughed at herself as she saw her reflection in the mirror. Then she took out the pins in her hair and ran her fingers through it.

She walked around to the bed, and flipped back the covers. Lexius then slid into her bed and pulled the covers back over her. Leaning against the headboard she quietly said, "Adam, it's ok, you can come in now."

The door slid open and Adam peeked his head in. Sighing that she was dressed and in bed he walked in. "Do you mind if I sit over here?" He asked as he motioned towards the edge of her bed.

She motioned for him to sit. Then he leaned towards the nightstand and set the tray across her lap. "Eat. I can tell that you're not going to do much of eating or resting until your friend is better, so I'm going to make sure that you do both. Now eat."

He picked up the spoon and tried handing it to her. "I'm not hungry." She mumbled as they both heard her stomach growling. "I'm not eating right now. What did you want to talk about?"

Adam frowned, then dipped the spoon into the broth, "It's not that much just try eating some, because if you don't eat and rest you're going to be sitting right here in this bed, and you won't be able to go by your friend, because you're going to be too sick and too weak to eat. Now open up, or I'll go get my Pa and my brother Hoss. They'll hold you down while I feed you."

She held her mouth shut. Adam raised the spoon to her lips. "Just try some. It's chicken broth, with a few chicken pieces mixed in there. It's really good. Hop Sing made it. He's the best cook in America." Alexius sighed and rolled her eyes, then opened her mouth. Adam began feeding her slowly, until the whole bowl was empty.

"Here, now drink this milk, then I'll leave you alone for the night. Someone will stay by Danny all night and if anything happens, we'll wake you up."

She drank the milk, then set down the glass, "Thanks, Adam. I just haven't felt up to eating since then."


End file.
